Obstetrics & Gynecology

Medical and surgical specialty concerned with the supervision of pregnancy and childbirth and with the health of the female reproductive system. Obstetrics, first practiced by midwives, developed as a medical discipline in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries, accepting the use of forceps in delivery, anesthetics, and antiseptic methods. Obstetricians confirm pregnancy, diagnose ectopic pregnancy, conduct prenatal care, carry out amniocentesis, deliver babies, & perform abortions. In the late twentieth century a backlash against the excessive medicalization (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System) of birth led to a revitalization of midwifery and encouragement of natural childbirth. Gynecologists do routine pelvic exams, take samples for Pap smears, recommend on and prescribe birth control, and treat reproductive system chaos like problems with menstruation, endometriosis, hormonal imbalances, and menopause. They perform surgery to put off conception (tubal ligation), repair pelvic injuries, & remove cysts and tumors from the cervix, uterus, and ovaries. Both specialties are concerned in diagnosis and treatment of infertility.